#krauncha

The Demoiselle Crane is a light-weight, elegant species of Cranes found in Central Eurasia and China, which takes one of the toughest migratory routes in the world. Every August, the birds in China begin their winter migration and take an arduous route, flying across the Himalayan terrain to reach India by November.

And it was a couple of these, that our great Sage Valmiki happened to chance upon, on a bright winter day, several hundred years before the birth of Christ. Thin, graceful and full of love, the kraunchas (as they were called back then), began their now famous mating dance on the banks of River Tamasa. Bending, jumping and calling out to each other, the red-eyed creatures were engrossed in a world of their own. Evidently, they were soul mates. The backdrop of the thick green trees somehow brought out the majesty in the slender grey birds. The cool breeze soothed Valmiki's heart, as he watched the birds reinforce their conjugal bond. He stood mesmerized, relishing the moment and becoming a silent part of their passionate ritual. And then, out of nowhere, tragedy struck.

The male krauncha suddenly fell to the ground, blood colouring his feathers red, fighting for his life. A hunter's arrow had pierced his wing and passed right through his body. The female made long high pitched calls, as if calling out to some divine force to restore her lover. The sage stood transfixed, unable to take in the sudden developments. And then, with a quiver, the male krauncha became lifeless. Nature made the kraunchas monogamous, which means, quite like some humans, they fall in love only once. When they find a mate, they stick to each other for life, creating intimate bonds by breeding, raising their families, singing and dancing. If fate decides to break a pair, the one left behind does nothing but lament all life, never attempting to find new love. Knowing this tore Valmiki's insides apart. He couldn't bear to hear the cry of the heart broken female, who would spend the rest of her life mourning her lover.  Were rules different for humans and animals? Wasn't love the same everywhere? The hunter couldn't be forgiven. Her agony bred his anger, and the words were out before he knew it:

|| mAnishAda pratishTAtum samagah sAshvatIssamAh yat krouncha mithunAdEkam sokam avadhIm kAma mOhitam ||

“Oh! Ill-fated hunter! You shall not command any respect in society for a long time as you have shot dead one of the pair of krauncha birds indulged in passion."

And there, without his knowledge, he had created the first piece of poetry to ever be written by man, earning him the title 'Aadi Kavi' - the oldest poet. Impressed by his verse, down came The Creator himself, seated on a lotus, all four faces lit up in smiles. He blessed the rishi, and entrusted him with the all important task of writing Rama's story. The story of the greatest man to have ever lived. The writer was given the power to see well into the past, the present and even the future, into events, into people's minds and their emotions, so he could write the story as it happened. And so began the Ramayana, with Valimiki's outburst being it's first verse.

As for the Demoiselles, well, they continue to live and breed, unaware of their significant role in the history of literature. Even today, you can see thousands of them every winter, taking the same gruelling route into India. They mostly gather at the tiny village of Khichan near Jodhpur, Rajasthan, where the entire village comes together year after year, to feed the birds and care for them during their stay there. If you happen to be in Khichan between November and February, you can still watch thousands of kraunchas sing, dance and keep their families together. But be careful not to intrude. You never know.